The above-described types of methods or systems are typically used in mobile radio devices.
The world's most widespread mobile radio system GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications), in addition to providing voice telephony, offers the option of sending or receiving short messages of up to 160 characters in length. This service is known as SMS (Short Message Service).
For mobile radio systems of the next generation (2.5G, 3G) such as UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), a multimedia-capable variant of a mobile message service is known. With this message service, messages with multimedia contents, known as MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service) messages and abbreviated in this document to MMS, are sent. By contrast with SMS, MMS messages are not restricted purely to text content. In addition, it will be possible to format texts in accordance with individual taste as well as to embed audio and video content into a message.
MMS are described in detail In Technical Specifications TS 22.140 Version 5.1.0, Release 5 and TS 23.140 Version 5.3.0, Release 5 of the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP).
FIG. 1 shows a known MMS network architecture with an MMS User Agent A (MMS UA A) and an MMS User Agent B (MMS UA B). MMS UA A or MMS UA B is an application, such as on a mobile radio terminal or a device connected to a mobile radio terminal, for instance a laptop or similar, which can implement MMS. FIG. 1 further shows two MMS service provider environments MMSE SP A and MMSE SP B (Multimedia Messaging Service Environment), and two network elements MMS RL A and MMS RL B (MMS Relay/Server). MMS RL A and MMS RL B are network elements which make MMS functionalities available to the user agents MMS UA A or MMS UA B within the area of responsibility of MMSE SP A or MMSE SP B.
Problems with this known MMS network architecture arise, however, when the network architecture is assembled from components from different manufacturers or components with a different functional scope. If, for example, an MMS service provider wishes to operate a number of MMS network elements MMS RL A, MMS RL B made by different manufacturers with different ranges of functions in their area of responsibility MMSE SP A or MMSE SP B, they must ensure, if a particular functionality is demanded for an MMS, such as on sending, relaying between two MMS service providers or delivery, that an MMS is only processed in the service environment by those network elements which support the functionalities, demanded. With many functionalities there is also the need for an MMS sent in response to a previously received original MMS to be processed by exactly the same network elements which have already processed the original MMS.
Accordingly, the present invention is directed toward a method and a system for the transmission of messages through which a network provider can dynamically expand his/her network architecture at any time by new network elements from different manufacturers or by components with a different functional scope, without having to run the risk of a service being processed by a network element which does not support the desired functionality.